OLED Breakthrough Yields 75% More Efficient Lights

Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) recently announced a breakthrough in OLED technology that shatters all prior efficiency standards, reducing the ultra-thin lights’ energy consumption by 75%! That’s no small number – the development stands to raise the bar for energy efficient lighting by leaps and bounds. Literally (and figuratively) a cool technology, we are already enamored by the skinny profile of organic light emitting diodes, and we can’t wait to see their further integration into our everyday appliances.

For those of you who are interested in the science behind KAIST’s recent breakthrough, the team discovered a new type of surface plasmon enhanced organic light emitting diode. To create the ultra-efficient OLEDs they thermally deposited silver nano-particals on a cathode under a high vacuum, resulting in a strong oscillator decay channel that increases photoluminescence emission rates by 1.75 times and increases light intensity twofold.

Whether or not we can fully wrap our heads around the science, we can’t wait to see these enhanced OLEDs hit the shelves of our favorite technology stores. We’ve been waiting in anticipation for the moment when OLED technology finally hits the mainstream, and it may be just upon the horizon.